


Of Kings and Magic

by artemis2227



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: After Revelations and Heirs of Fates, Character Death, Eventual cat boy, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Localization Names, OC villain - Freeform, Post-Game, post-Revelations, should be a crack topic but is actually serious
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-28
Updated: 2017-01-16
Packaged: 2018-07-18 17:24:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7324126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artemis2227/pseuds/artemis2227
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>SPOILERS FOR FIRE EMBLEM: FATES (SPECIFICALLY REVELATIONS)</p><p>Okay here it is. Oh boy this idea has been rattling around in my brain for a while. </p><p>So I wanted to challenge myself in my writing by giving myself a topic that would normally only be a crack topic or smut and make it an actual, serious story. So guess what I choose? Cat boys. That's right, I'm going to make Xander a cat boy and be completely serious about it. </p><p>I decided to do a FE:F character because I've been completely obsessed with it for the past few months. I choose Xander because he's not only my favorite character, he's also one of the big stoic heroes with a reputation. I thought'd be really funny to make the King of Nohr, this huge manly leader, and give him cat ears and a tail. </p><p>That being said, this isn't just cat!Xander antics. In fact, he won't even be a cat boy for quite a few chapters. It's also a kind of after-after story, after Revelations and Heirs of Fates. There's also some focus on Ryoma, considering the title is plural. Nyx is a pretty prominent character as well. </p><p>This is all set in my first Revelations file, with all those marriages and classes intact. I choose that one because that's the file I married Xander in.</p><p>(also posted on deviantart if anyone prefers that site: http://tinyurl.com/z8qrfps)</p>
    </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS FOR FIRE EMBLEM: FATES (SPECIFICALLY REVELATIONS)
> 
> Okay here it is. Oh boy this idea has been rattling around in my brain for a while. 
> 
> So I wanted to challenge myself in my writing by giving myself a topic that would normally only be a crack topic or smut and make it an actual, serious story. So guess what I choose? Cat boys. That's right, I'm going to make Xander a cat boy and be completely serious about it. 
> 
> I decided to do a FE:F character because I've been completely obsessed with it for the past few months. I choose Xander because he's not only my favorite character, he's also one of the big stoic heroes with a reputation. I thought'd be really funny to make the King of Nohr, this huge manly leader, and give him cat ears and a tail. 
> 
> That being said, this isn't just cat!Xander antics. In fact, he won't even be a cat boy for quite a few chapters. It's also a kind of after-after story, after Revelations and Heirs of Fates. There's also some focus on Ryoma, considering the title is plural. Nyx is a pretty prominent character as well. 
> 
> This is all set in my first Revelations file, with all those marriages and classes intact. I choose that one because that's the file I married Xander in.
> 
> (also posted on deviantart if anyone prefers that site: http://tinyurl.com/z8qrfps)

A new, foreign peace had settled across the kingdoms of Nohr and Hoshido. With the end of the war on Valla came a peace treaty between the two countries, signed by King Xander of Nohr and King Ryoma of Hoshido. The treaty stated that no hostility was to erupt between the two kingdoms for many years to come. The two countries were now allies against any attacking outside forces. The treaty also stated that grants of land are to be donated from both countries, to help restore two lost kingdoms by the names of Kohga and Valla. Leading the restorations were Shura, for Kohga, and Queen Corrin for Valla.

If she not been the only accepting heir to the Vallite throne, Corrin would have ascended to be queen of Nohr alongside her husband, Xander. Instead, Corrin accepted the position of sole monarch of Valla. She would rebuild her country in the same dimension as she was raised, taking advice from her husband and siblings along the way. Her palace, named after the late Queen Mikoto, was built as close to the Nohrian border as possible This was so that she would not be far from her husband. Xander had schemed to grace Valla with a large chunk of land not far north of Castle Krakenburg. It took less then two hours’ ride on a winged beast at top speed to move between the castles. 

Xander was the ceremonious King of Valla as well, attending important Vallite banquets as such. Corrin did the same with all important Norhian banquets, attending as queen. The people agreed with this arrangement, even if some of them thought it was quite convoluted. But then again, even Xander and Corrin thought it was so. ne must do as necessary to stay with the person one loves, and the people of all kingdoms understood this. The land was at peace for months. Yet it seemed trouble could not help but knock at the door for Xander and Corrin.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“Wake up, Lady Corrin! An intruder has invaded the castle!” An accented voice came from what seemed like a mile away, yet was quite near Corrin’s pointed ears. 

“Nnng what? Jakob? Good morning…” Corrin had not yet registered the impact of Jakob’s words. She always was a heavy sleeper. 

“Lady Corrin! The castle is being attacked! Your husband left bed so that he may defend it! Not that you’d notice, being such a log in bed.” Jakob continued to yell at Corrin in the attempts to shake her from the haze of sleep. He went as far as to insult her under his breath. 

Finally, the message seemed to get through Corrin’s foggy head. Her hand reached out to the right where her husband should be in bed next to her. She had come to Castle Krakenburg for banquet in honor of the newly appointed Governor Shura of Kohga. 

“Xander! Where did he go? I’m going to help fight!” Corrin shot up from the four-poster bed, and crossed the room towards the opposite wall. The closet there was where she kept her custom armor. 

“Are my children all right, Jakob?”

“Lord Xander went to the castle armory in order to equip himself, milady. I believe Siegbert followed him there not five minutes after, and you left Kana with his attendants at Castle Mikoto.” Jakob drew a silver knife concealed in the right side of his uniform and checked the sharpness of its point against his finger. A sun festal was attached to the left side of his uniform. Corrin knew he had other weapons and staves concealed in the puffy sleeves and layers of his uniform. Even in a time of peace, Jakob always had a blade on him. 

Corrin threw open the closet before nearly hopping into her armor. Jakob crossed the room and assisted her in strapping and buckling and buttoning, as if they had done it many times before. Normally Felicia or Flora would assist Corrin in dressing, but this was an emergency. 

“I will accompany you to the armory if you wish, milady,” Jakob said, as the last button was in place. He made an about face and walked quietly across the bedroom to the door, opening it a crack and checking to make sure the hall was clear. When he was confident no one was lying in ambush, he opened the door all the way. 

“Yes please, Jakob. Now lets hurry!” Corrin dashed out of the room at full speed, heading right then downstairs to the barracks. Jakob was a few paces behind her.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~

The armory was on the outer top level of the castle, due to how it was built downwards into the ground. Normally a ten minute walk away from Xander and Corrin’s room, Corrin and Jakob did it in two. 

Barely twenty feet away from Corrin’s room, a man in ninja’s garb jumped out at them. Jakob took the arrival as hostility and threw himself in front of Corrin, before noticing that this ninja had green hair. He was very much a friend of theirs. 

“Kaze!” Corrin jolted to a stop. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be looking for Mozu? And Midori?”

Kaze’s cool expression did not change as he responded. The man has always had a cool head in the face of danger. “I have already confirmed the whereabouts of my wife and daughter. They wish to fight defending the castle. They are headed towards the armory currently. You are doing the same, I assume? May I accompany you?”

“Yes, please. Safety in numbers. Let’s get going.” Corrin took off again at top speed. 

Silas, Felicia, and Flora encountered Corrin in much the same way as Kaze. They had gone looking for their Lady as soon as they talked to their spouses and children. Silas’s wife, Lady Sakura of Hoshido, had immediately rushed out of their guest room to grab her bow and staves as soon as she heard of intruders. Their daughter Sophie followed her soon after, grabbing her weapons and heading towards the stable. Felicia, being less concerned about arming herself during peacetime then her husband, only had staves on hand. Her son, Dwyer, had stayed at Castle Mikoto with an injury. Flora followed Jakob’s example and was always armed with at least one dagger or shuriken, and various staves. She had no husband or child. All of them ran into Corrin (Felicia almost collided with Kaze) and immediately joined the small party. At Corrin's request, they filled her in with where their families were and what they knew about the enemy as they ran. 

“Whoever these people are, they’re very strong,” Flora was on the left of Corrin, and turned her head to speak. “I encountered one on the way here, a general. He got a good hit in on me. Most of my health was gone in that one attack. I barely had enough strength left to hit him with one of my sting shuriken and run away.”

“She ran right into Silas and I,” Felicia came up on the right side of Corrin to interject. “Lucky I had a mend staff on me, healed her up right away.”

Corrin nodded to Felicia, then turned back to Flora. “Quick thinking, attacking him with sting shuriken. Hopefully it’s delayed him.”

“I’m lucky I had some with me,” Flora responded.

“We’re lucky our rooms were all near each other,” Silas shouted from his position behind Corrin. “We all found each other pretty fast.”

The party turned the last corner and came into view of the armory door. Jakob and Flora dashed ahead to open the double doors, ever vigilant. They stayed holding the doors until everyone had entered the large room, when they dropped their position. Dashing inside, they bolted the door shut behind them. 

The armory was bustling with activity. Many wooden racks lined the middle portion of the room. All were filled with sharpened, ready-to-use silver and brave blades maintained by the castle staff. There were endless amounts of swords, daggers, and sets of shuriken of varying types, ranging from weak brass to strong silver. The aisles on the end with silver and special weapons were the most crowded. 

Larger weapons warranted larger racks, attached to the walls of the room. These racks contained your lances, axes, and bows, also organized according to strength. Like with the smaller weapons, the shelves with the most powerful weapons were crowded. 

Of course, one end of the room was dedicated to many bookshelves full of tomes and scrolls of varying power and type. Mages stood crowded around the shelves packed full of ginnungagaps, dragon spirits, and endless other spells.

Corrin and her party got thrown into the hustle and bustle of the busy room, all the while looking for her husband. She saw many familiar faces. The entire army that had prevailed in the war was invited to Shura’s banquet, and nearly everyone had shown. The only that hadn’t come were Dwyer, who was nursing a broken bone, and Gunter, who had all but disappeared after the war. Kana too did not show, Corrin thinking he did not need to involve himself in politics. 

The armory was full of people who had fought alongside Corrin in Valla. She saw Laslow, donning the red cape of his preferred profession as a vanguard, his wife Hana tying her headband beside him. Kaden, Keaton, Selkie, and Velouria were exiting the room as Corrin and company entered. They didn't need to prepare much, since they kept their beaststones on them at all times. Kaden and Keatons' wives, Peri and Rinkah respectively, followed after, with Peri taking a detour to the stables. Subaki and his daughter, Caeldori, were in the front of the line for silver lances, with wife and mother Selena first in line for silver swords. She already held an axe and was reviewing the technique Sol. Not every combatant was there. Many had already equipped themselves and left, defending the castle instead of attacking. Once everyone was equipped, the offense would start. 

The royal siblings were all there as well. Azura was with the mages, looking for a suitable tome, already in her gear as a dark flier. Meanwhile her husband, Benny, was heading for an iron axe, in the event that he came into contact with lance users. Ryoma and Camilla were examining axes, Ryoma already having Raijinto on his person. He rarely left Castle Shirasagi without it, peacetime or no. Sakura rushed to Silas’s side as soon as he entered the room. Leo was off in a corner with his wife, Hinoka, trying to remind her how to use tomes. Even though she had become a dark flier during the war, she never did like magic much, and set it down in favor of the lance during practice. Takumi was helping his spouse Elise decide which staves to bring into battle. Meanwhile, he was checking the tautness on a mini bow in case he got caught in a corner during the fight. 

Taking in everything at once, Corrin turned to the end of the room parallel to the shelves of tomes. This was where the divine weapons were intended to reside under lock and key when not needed for combat. Of course, they weren't used much, with Xander and Leo preferring to keep Siegfried and Byrnhildr with them. It would be the most likely place to find Xander, as he liked to prepare there, out of the way of the rest of the army.

Corrin’s intuition was sharp. Xander stood by the case, with his back to the rest of the room. Strapping Siegfried to his waist, he was watching his son test the balance on a javelin a few paces away. 

The queens’ gait was quick towards her husband and son. She nearly tripped over Saizo and Asugi, standing at the racks packed full of shuriken. They were equipping themselves with blades of various types, being generally quiet and, well, ninja-like. Something impressive, considering Saizo’s red hair and Asugi’s light blue. A quick “Sorry!” from Corrin and a nod from Saizo sent her back on her way towards her husband.

“Xander!” Corrin raised her voice as she neared him, his back still to her. As soon as he heard her voice, he turned around. Siegfried was now secure on his waist. Siegbert also walked over to join the conversation.

“Why didn’t you wake me up? You knew I’d want to come fight!” Corrin had her hands on her hips and a look of anger flashed across her face as she gazed up at her tall husband. 

“I’m sorry, little princess. You know I have a hard time waking you up when you are sleeping so peacefully.” Even though Corrin was a queen now, the nickname still stuck, much to Corrin’s pleasure. 

“We’re being attacked, Xander. Wake me up when that happens.” Corrin, in an attempt to ignore her husband, turned to her son, and pulled him into a hug. “Are you all right? Did you encounter anyone on the way here?”

Siegbert pushed the overbearing Corrin away. 

“Yes, mother. If you’ll excuse me, I must be off to the stables for my horse. I will see you in the battle.” The blonde turned and walked off towards the door.

“Be careful and fight well, son!” Corrin shouted after him, before turning back towards the shelves for divine weapons. 

“Now, where is my dragonstone?” Corrin said to herself. Xander overheard. Walking up behind her, he placed his left hand on her hip. Coming up close behind her, he reached his right arm over her right shoulder towards her left hip pocket. He tapped it softly.

“You keep it right here.” Xander leaned his head close to her right ear and whispered. Corrin could feel Xander’s breath on her ear. She sighed.

“Why is it I can never stay mad at you?” she said. Grabbing his cheek with her left hand, she turned his face towards her and planted a quick kiss on his lips.

“Good morning, my little princess. Now, I believe we have a battle to fight?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Any and all feedback (kudos, bookmarks, follows) is VERY appreciated and you will get virtual hugs from me!
> 
> ~Artemis


	2. The Battle of Krakenburg

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time to start getting into the meat of things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check notes at the end for pictures of the weapons described in this chapter.

Corrin jumped in front of Xander, to block him from what would have been a killing blow from an arrow. He had only taken two hits so far. Usually that would put barely a scratch in his superior defenses. However, the defending force had underestimated their foe. Many had already retreated to conserve the last bit of their life. The remaining healers were working nonstop, as close to the front lines as they dared. 

“Are you okay?” Corrin said through clenched teeth. She had taken a hit herself, from a silver axe. Normally her Yato could best an axe wielder, but this malig knight had all but run her over. 

“As okay as I can be in this situation. How are they so much stronger than us? We bested a dragon at this strength!” Xander offered his hand to Corrin. The moment her hand touched his, he was lifting her onto the back of his horse. They needed to retreat and get healing.The battle so far the battle hadn’t even crossed ten minutes. The defending force was being decimated. 

Battle plans existed for defending the castle, should an attack like this ever occur. All the Nohrian royals and retainers knew them by heart. They were the ones who directed their Hoshidan allies in where to defend. Long ago, near the beginning of King Garons’ reign, Nohrian tacticians had a meeting to decid the best place of defense should the castle ever be attacked. They settled on the throne room, considering its location in the castle. Since the castle had been built down into the earth, with the throne room placed near the surface, it was a brilliant location to defend from. One could defend the lower, main region of the castle from their, because the throne room was the main way to access the lower portion. Archers, mages, and long-distance stave users could provide support from the many towers and walls lining the top of the castle.

At the beginning of the fight, the defense of the castle was strong. A line of armored units bore the duty of maintaining the front line. Oboro, Rinkah, Effie, Benny, Ignatius; all were there, helping defend from physical attackers. Behind them, units with high resistance and the archers were placed. Kaze, Saizo, Orochi, Leo, Odin, Niles,— mostly ninjas, mages, and adventurers were here. A few mages and archers were in the walls surrounding, including Nyx and Rhajat, the only witches in the army, with the ability to warp around the map. They could be seen popping in and out in the front lines, assisting wherever they were most needed. Takumi, Setsuna, Kiragi, and Nina, to name a few, were raining down arrows on the enemy from all sides. The last line, behind the ranged defenses and near the actual Norhian throne, housed the healers. All had arms full of different staves for all different situations. Those such as Elise and Sakura that could use weapons had ones if they needed to defend themselves. Azama and Mitama were the only ones who opted out of this. They choose instead to run around the first two lines of defense, fighting and debuffing. Of course, they had sun festals with them as well. Flying units such as Subaki and Camilla flew around to where they were needed most, all being careful to stay out of the enemy archers range.

While these defenses would usually deter any intruder, these unknown enemies were incredibly powerful. Many of the Nohrian allies were drained of their strength in one hit, and were forced to retreat to save their lives. Only the strongest fighters remained, most of which were people that had fought with Corrins’ army.

The old army members were barely faring better than their weaker counterparts. Shiro and Benny were on the front lines, hardly able to stay standing, they had taken so many hits. Mitama rushed forward from the backlines to help. A powerful malig knight was approaching Benny, tome in hand, when Niles came out of nowhere and took him down with his trusty shining bow. Niles himself looked about ready to collapse of exhaustion. Not ten feet away, Midori had utilized her copy skill, and now two mechanists were tag-teaming a paladin. She was still fairing poorly even with two of her. Arthur and Odin, (the latter equipped with a sword he had given the strange name Scion of Legend) had teamed up to attempt to hold back a kinshi knight that was getting dangerously close Beruka. Camilla and Ryoma were holding their own against a spear master in the far reaches of the front lines. At least they were until they both had their defenses lowered by the spear masters’ innate skill. Azama was running about all the battling combatants, providing support. His wife, Orochi, was supporting him, helping him with his resistance to magic. 

Corrin was able to see all of them and more fighting to defend the throne from her position on Xander’s horse. They themselves had been right in the middle of the front lines. As soon as they reached where the battle was beginning, they immediately took position as some of the lead fighters. This meant they were some of the first to retreat backward for healing. The only reason they were was that they were confident they could dash back to the front lines swiftly after being healed.

Xander maneuvered his horse around their allies, eyes ahead towards where Sakura and Elise were standing in front of the throne. They were healing up Ignatius and Sophie, the two great knights, who had been on the front lines with Xander and Corrin. They'd retreated only mere moments before the couple. 

As they reached the four, Ignatius and Sophie remounted their steeds and took off at full speed back towards the front lines. Sophie nodded to Corrin as they passed each other. Xander approaced the princesses, and pulled back his horses reigns as he pulled up between them.

“Sister! Brother!” Elise exclaimed from their left, holding a recover staff, as the two stopped between the girls. Xander swiftly swung his right leg over to his left side and slid off his horse, like he had done many times before. Without needing to verbally communicate with him, Corrin understood. For efficiencies sake, Elise would heal Xander and Sakura would heal Corrin. She dismounted on the right side, where Sakura already had a moon festal in hand. 

“S-sister! Are you okay?!” Sakura interrogated Corrin as she channeled magic into her staff. “How is everybody? I-is the front line h-holding up?” Her face had look of anxiety. She released the healing magic over her sister. Corrin's small cuts and bruises closed, and she felt much better. She hugged her sister, recognizing the stutter in her voice as obvious worry.

“To be honest, it’s not going to well. We’re going to need your talents for a little while longer, sis.” Corrin squeezed her tighter for a moment, then dropped her arms. She turned around, where Xander already had one foot in his horses’ stirrups. 

“You doing okay, Elise?” Corrin peered over the horses rump to ask the pigtailed girl. 

“Yup! Staying super busy! It’s not good that so many people are getting hurt, but at least I can help!” 'Even in a time where everything is falling down around us, Elise still has a bright smile and an optimistic viewpoint,' Corrin thought. 'Just like her.'

“Good. Stay safe, both of you.” Corrin said, directing the last part to both her siblings. Reaching her hand up to the now-settled-in-his-saddle Xander, he grabbed it and pulled her up in one fluid motion.

“B-both of you stay safe too!” Sakura said from behind Corrin as she swung her left leg over the horses rump.  
Corrin turned her head towards Sakura and smiled. “We’ll do our best.”

~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“Xander, we’re getting pushed back!” Corrin shouted while parrying an attack from a hero. The enemy smiled. He spotted an opening, there on Corrin’s left shoulder. Raising his blade, he swung down towards the queen with all his might.

Suddenly, an armored horse came out of nowhere, and his blade got parried. A second later, two divine weapons were embedded in his chest.  
Xander and Corrin pulled their blades in sync from the now dead hero.

“I know. Ryoma and Camilla have retreated for healing, and many of our fliers have retreated for good. I haven’t seen Subaki and Selena recently. Nor Beruka and Saizo.”

“That’s really not good. I’ve seen a lot of kinshis and bow knights in their forces. Do you think they might’ve been…?” Corrin had a look of horror on her face.  
“They are strong. Their mounts might have fallen, but I am sure that they themselves are alive.”

“Yeah. Yeah, okay.” Corrin took a deep breath and pointed with her sword towards a general trying to break through the front lines. “I brought an armorslayer.”  
He grimaced. “I’ll follow you.”

Corrin took off towards the armored foe. The unmistakable glint of a spell came from her left, and she instinctively dropped to the ground. Risking a glance to the left, she saw a dead berserker on the floor and the receding branches of Brynhilder. She jumped back up, and continued on her way, pulling her armorslayer from her belt.  
For the last few minutes of the battle, enemy reinforcements had not come. However, now it seemed that the cavalry was running in at full speed. At least 20 new foes had entered the fray at once, overwhelming the Nohrian defences. Most were mounted. Some were were mages. Several kinshi knights followed behind, just waiting for another flying to come close to them. 

At the front of the wave, a dark flier led the charge. He seemed grander than all the rest. His steed had magical runes drawn all over it, colored maroon. When the light hit them just right, they seemed to glisten with the color of blood. The man riding it was dressed in traditional sorcerer garb, instead of a dark fliers’ armor. Like his pegasus, he had runes drawn across his exposed skin in deep red. Black oily hair fell down, barely past his ears. His face was gruesomely handsome, with thin, lightly colored lips drawn into a terrifying smile. He had one of those timeless faces that appeared as if he could be anywhere between twenty years old and forty years old. His cheeks were sharp and triangular, his nose sharp as well, perfect for staring down at someone. His eyes, the same color as the runes painted on his body, were narrowed as he was gazing across the front lines. He seemed to be searching for someone. In his left hand was a large tome that was purple on the outside, with a large black circle on the front. In his right hand was a golden lance with a protruding head, and claw-like spines erupting around it.

Corrins head turned at the advancement of this strange and powerful-looking newcomer as she continued to run sideways along the front lines. The flier seemed to her like the leader of the group. He stopped on the furthest part of the balcony preceding the throne room. (Corrin didn’t know this, but in another universe, where she sided with her birth family, she defeated Hans in the same place) She made a mental note to stay away from him, then turned her head back towards her goal of the general. Hearing the rampant hoof beats of Xander behind her, she assumed that he also noticed the strange man approaching. Had she not assumed, she would have notified Xander of the strange man. Xander would see him, and order a retreat with not even a second of hesitation.

What Corrin didn’t notice about the man was his scanning of the front lines, looking for a target. He found his target mere seconds after Corrin turned her head away from him. That terrifying smile extended a little longer. Hooking the lance he was carrying to a loop in his pegasus’ reigns, he opened the tome he was carrying and started to cast a spell. His target had just come back from being healed, after having to retreat temporarily from the battle field. Alongside his purple-haired wife, of course. Running full speed in bright red towards the new wave of troops would make him an easily-attained bullseye. Good. The man didn't want to have to chase him down. He had come all this way, done all this just to find him, on Nohrian territory. 

The man finished the complicated spell and held the ball of dark energy in his hands. It was time to tell his troops to retreat. This had only been an attack to scare them, anyway. 

A smooth, deep voice cut through the battlefield. It must have been magically amplified, because even the mages and archers in the towers surrounding could hear it clearly. Every single enemy except those behind the dark flier stopped in their tracks. They lowered their weapons to their sides.  
Corrin heard the voice and stopped in her tracks, trying to locate it’s owner. Something about it was oddly alluring. When she found it was coming from the rune-covered man, she focused on him. 

“My comrades! Retreat! We don’t want to completely crush their forces. At least not today. After all, we are good friends with the Nohrian royal family, no?”

Corrin saw the extravagant man slide off his pegasus, a large mass of dark energy visible in his right hand. The general she had previously been pursuing had just run past her right. He was heading full speed to where the attacking force had originally broken into the castle. Out of the corner of her eye, Corrin saw Hisame come up beside her on the same right, with armorslayer in hand. 'He must have had the same idea as me.' Corrin tried to turn her head to look at him, but something kept her body frozen. Out of her left side peripheral vision, Corrin saw Xander with a look of horror on his face, directed towards the sorcerer. He seemed to recognize the man. 

The sorcerer’s commanding presence seemed to draw everyones eyes to him. Enchantments must have been involved. It seemed as if every Norhian, Hoshidan, Kohgan, Wind Tribe chieftain, and Anna had dropped everything to watch this man talk. No one could move more than their eyes. 

Pacing around the balcony in front of the throne room, he delivered a speech addressing the defending force. It answered some questions and raised others.

“Hello, Nohrians, Hoshidans, those not of either country. Few of you have met me. My name is Claudius.” Corrin noticed Xander’s head twitch to her left. “I am the head of Risum Edere Loculus, or for you more intellectually-challenged individuals, Rideus. We are a small village of highly trained combatants. But most importantly, we are loyal to King Garon.” He stopped pacing on the right side of the landing, standing sideways from his crowd, looking off in the distance. After a few moments, Claudius’s head jerked back to his audience.

“Incredibly loyal to King Garon.” His words dripped with malice. “Some of his best fighters and most dedicated men have been from our small clan.” He started pacing again, tracing endless circles on the hardened ground. Claudius might have seemed to have lost all malicious intent, if he didn’t still have a dark spell radiating waves of magic from his hand.

“Ever since that upstart boy over there-“ he gestured with his chin towards Xander, and consequently Corrin “-took the throne from the king after he mysteriously disappeared, I’ve been planning this attack. You see, I believe this country was going in the right direction. I believe that Nohr should crush Hoshido, and Mokushu, and Kohga, and Izumo, and Nestra, and this new Valla.” Claudius’s expression grew violent and crazed. It was a stark contrast from the calm, creepy smile that decorated his face moments ago. As he listed off names of countries, the apparent craziness only grew.

“King Garon’s dream will be realized, it must! And if his own son, his own flesh and blood won’t heed his words and complete what he started, then someone else must. Who better than someone just as powerful as Garon?” Slowly, he brought his hands up in front of his chest, and passed the spell like a ball back and forth between them. Claudius’s face turned downcast and dark, his voice lowered and threatening. 

“Today was just an experiment. To see how easy it would be to enter the castle. I’ve discovered some valuable insight on your army as well. We’ll be back.” The threatening demeanor was gone, replaced by an almost clownish smile that tried to be kind. It was obvious, however, that this man had never smiled kindly in his life.

“Of course, we’ll give you time to regroup, heal, all that. I want this to be a real fight, not a pushover. It’s not a conquest without resistance! No, it wouldn’t be nearly as fun. So go. Scamper away with your tails between your legs, figuratively and literally. We’ll be back in 2 months. Until then, have a present, from your dear friend Claudius of Rideus!”

He dropped the magic sphere he was holding. Instead of rushing towards it’s target like one would assume it would, it seemed to be affected by gravity like a normal ball. It sank into the ground. 

The whole room was silent. Not a peep was heard from anyone or anything. 

A white circled appeared under Claudius, decorated with obscure runes. He raised his arms from their places sides slowly, as if he was summoning something. Once they had reach parallel to the ground, he shot wisps of misty black magic out of his fingertips. Tendrils of black, purple, gray smoke dropped to the ground and moved, like earthworms. Slowly they came together to form a larger, purple design on the floor, directly under Ryoma. With two circles in the middle, one inside of the other, it appeared to be a more advanced version of the small white circle originally summoned. White glyphs appeared on the inner circle, moving counterclockwise, continually spinning faster and faster. They made a horrible noise that sounded as if wind was being contorted by someone, like someone was trying to control it. 

A large black hole appeared in the middle of the circles, quickly filling both. Claudius snapped his fingers. The hole flipped so that instead of being in the floor, it was now floating in midair, inches away from the ceiling. It seemed to suck the life out of Ryoma, who was standing beneath it.

Ryoma looked up, terror crossing his face. Everyone knew he was not the best at resisting magic, instead focusing in dodging any and all attacks. He dashed to the edge of the circle in an attempt to do just tha. As he reached the edge, instead of running out from under it like he should have, he hit an invisible barrier. It must have been a part of the spell that made sure the victim was hit, or Claudius had cast it alongside. Ryoma started pounding on the wall with his fists. 

“Help! I can’t- I won’t be able too- Why are you all just standing there?!!”

The spell struck the red king just as Camilla, the first person to break out of the trance, started running towards him. The black hole sucked the energy out of the him. You could almost see the life drain out of him and into that never-ending pit. Ryoma crumpled to the ground, falling into the fetal position.

“Ryoma! Hold on, darling!” Camilla hefted her axe as she neared the barrier. The second she got there, she launched a full-out attack on the barrier, angrier than anyone had ever seen her. Xander, Corrin, and Hinoka were the next to break the trance and run towards Ryoma. Off in the distance, Takumi could be heard shouting incoherently from a tower, with the sound drawing closer overtime. Sakura was still back in the throne room with the other healers. 

As the second wave of worried friends neared the Hoshidan king, the black hole floating above suddenly disappeared. Corrin glanced to where Claudius had been moments earlier, and she saw no one. No Claudius, no troops behind him. They had vanished into thin air. 

Corrin, Xander, and Hinoka reached the still erect barrier. Even though the black hole had gone, the barrier was still there. Corrin knew that the barrier’s lingering was a means of delaying care for Ryoma. The sooner they could get it down, the better chance they had of Ryoma surviving. Corrin turned her head around to look for Leo, or Nyx, or Odin, someone who might know something about this type of magic. Luckily for her, the trance appeared to be wearing off on the rest of the troops. Waves and waves of people came running towards her, all obviously terrified of what could happen to one of the most important men in the army. Spotting Leo in the distance riding towards her, with Odin doing the same not far behind, she was satisfied they’d be able to help take down the barrier.

Turning her head back, Corrin saw that Ryoma had now fainted, and was now lying face-down on the floor. She could still see the middle of his back rising and falling; thankfully he was still breathing. 

Closing the short gap between herself and the barrier, Corrin placed her palms on it and stared through. It didn’t hurt to touch. It felt like a normal glass wall, just one you couldn’t see at all. A few feet to her left, Camilla was still hacking away, trying to put a dent in the barrier, but to no avail. Hinoka had fallen to the ground next to Corrin’s feet, crying her eyes out. She always was the most sensitive when it came to family. Xander stood close by to her right, taking in the situation with distress evident in the way he stood.

Corrin heard three sounds behind her, two of hoofbeats and one of footsteps. She already knew who they belonged too without having to turn around. Stepping up on her left, Leo crouched down to comfort his red-haired wife, pulling her into a hug. Odin hopped off his own horse behind the pair of hugging royals. Takumi came up to the right of Xander, fuming with anger and concern evident in his eyes. 

Leo stood up, Hinoka sitting on the ground near his feet. He spoke to Corrin, not turning his gaze away from his brother-in-law. “We need to get him out and to the healers. Fast.” Corrin turned her head slightly to the left as he addressed her.

“Definitely. But how? This barrier’s taken all of Camilla’s might and still hasn’t given, brute force isn’t going to work.”

From behind them, Odin cut in. “Maybe strong magical force would work? Nyx has Excalibur with her.” Corrin noticed that his usual theatrical antics were gone, likely due to dire situation at hand. She must remember to thank him later. 

Leo nodded. “It’s at least worth a shot.” He posed himself as if he was about to turn on his heal, when something stopped him. He stared at the limp Ryoma in front of him.

“Wait. Something is happening to him. There’s magic building up in his body.” Everyone surrounding the wall turned towards him, including Camilla. She had stopped her assault when she realized nothing was happening. 

“I see it too.” Odin chimed in from behind Leo. “It’s dark, getting darker every moment.”

“I don’t understand, I thought magic was a one-and-done thing. You cast it, you hurt your opponent, then the magic is gone.” Takumi said. 

“Most spells do follow that pattern, yes.” A female voiced came from behind Odin and Leo. Nyx was standing there, Sakura on her arm. “I warped over to get the Princess when I saw Ryoma in trouble. Princess Elise is on her way too.” Everyone except Hinoka turned to look at the woman dressed in witch’s attire. Sakura dropped Nyx’s arm and ran to Hinoka’s side, simultanesouly comforting her older sister and looking at her brother. Tears began to form in her eyes. 

“Some of the more powerful dark magic spells have a sort of poison effect, surfacing a few minutes after the initial spell. That is, if the target survives the initial spell.”

“How do we get rid of it? The magic building up?” Corrin asked.

“As far as I know… you can’t.” Everyones’ faces went grim with realization and horror, Camilla’s the most so. Sakura and Hinoka’s sobs grew louder. 

“I can at least break the barrier for you. All it takes is a strong, precise spell and it will shatter like glass. It’ll give you a few last moments wi-“ Something about Ryoma caught her eye.

“That’s not- how is that possible?” Nyx’s eyes went wide. Everyone turned back towards the king. 

“What is causing it to move like that?” Odin said, approaching Leo’s right, now standing between him and Corrin. He glanced inquisitively towards Leo, who gave a quick nod. 

“The magic appears like there’s a black cloud covering his entire body. That black cloud just shifted. The magic somehow moved to his right arm.” Odin explained, for those who haven’t extensively trained in magic.

Ryoma looked no different to the non-magic users standing around him. Ryoma had left off his shoulder guards in his hurry to be ready for battle. When that visible skin on his right arm started to turn black, it drew everyone's attention.

“Guys…” Takumi said, scanning the mages faces for their reactions. They looked just as surprised as everyone else. By now a small crowd had gathered around behind the royals and mages. All those who had not retreated from wounds and had fought by Ryoma’s side in the war stood, concerned. Saizo and Kagero had come to the front, now to the left of Camilla. Beruka and Selena were behind her. Shiro retreated earlier with egregious wounds to the knees. 

The kings’ skin continued to get darker and darker over the next few moments, until it was the same shade as Kagero’s hair. This was when Nyx decided to act.  
“Corrin, step back. I’m going to break the barrier.” Nyx stepped forward slightly until she was behind Corrin. 

Corrin turned around to face Nyx, nodded, and walked forward a few steps to get out of her way. Just as she was about to turn back, a noise like an explosion erupted behind her. She whipped around. Ryoma’s clothes and armor had been seared off the right side of his body. Burns in the shape of tendrils of lightning ran up and down the exposed skin, going all the way from his shoulder to his hip and down to his toes. Where his arm should connect was a bloody wound with an empty shoulder socket in the middle. Ryoma’s arm sat ten feet to the right of his body, blackened flesh slowly disintegrating into dust. Raijinto was still clutched tight in its fingers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Superior lance: http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/fireemblem/images/5/5d/Superior_Lance.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/81?cb=20130420215025
> 
> Apocalypse: http://orig13.deviantart.net/0093/f/2009/057/8/c/fire_emblem_7___magic_by_fistsh.png  
> (bottom right corner)
> 
> If anyone has any questions or just wants to contact me, here's my Tumblr: http://artemis2227.tumblr.com/


	3. "We are going to fight him, aren't we?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Shiro is informed of his fathers condition. King Xander and the other royals plan a counterattack against Claudius.

“Okay, as long as you don’t put any weight on them for the next hour, you’ll be fine,” Mitama said to Shiro, after splinting his knees. “I wouldn’t recommend putting any weight on them for the next week, but absolutely not for the next hour.”

While he was fighting on the front lines, a blacksmith took a swing at Shiro’s legs with a club and shattered his knee caps. Camilla had gone back to be healed along with Ryoma, otherwise she would have gone into a murderous rage to get to her son. Instead Mitama heard him screaming and dragged him off the field to a large closet just off the throne room. They’d prepared these small rooms with bedrolls, water, and food. Their purpose was for fighters who sustain particularly bad injuries in the fight to have a place near them to rest. 

This particular room was small. The wooden cot took up just less than half the room. Mitama took up most of the rest, standing over the young prince. Grabbing the blanket folded at the end of the cot, she unfolded it and threw it over his legs. 

Shiro nodded to Mitama. “You’d better go. I’m sure there are more people that need your skills with a staff. Thanks for taking care of this stupid guy though." Shiro pointed to himself with his thumb." I shoulda realized earlier that I needed to fall back. Guess I’m just too stubborn.”

“You can be stubborn a lot. Even so, you fought bravely.” Mitama stepped back from cot and folded her arms, pulling out her writing tablet. 

“A future king fights/to protect his dear comrades/he is greatly loved.” She blushed a deep red. Mitama knew full well that this was no time to confess her feelings, but the haiku wrote itself.

“You’re getting better, Mitama.” The prince didn’t recognize the confession. Unluckily (or luckily) for Mitama, boys are dense. 

“Now go do me a favor and make sure my mom and pop are okay.” Shiro said.

Mitama nodded, turned around, and dashed out of the room, redness still dancing on her cheeks. Shiro noticed that something seemed up with her. She usually couldn’t leave a room without spouting off a few more poems. He couldn’t ask her about it right now though, considering he couldn’t walk. 

“Whelp, I might as well try and get some rest.” Talking to himself, Shiro decided the current best course of action. 

“It is the middle of the night. Won’t be any good to anyone if I’m so tired I can’t walk in the morning.” He realized the irony of his statement. “Probably won’t walk in the morning anyways, if I can help it. Mitama said it’d be bad. At least it doesn’t hurt anymore.” Shiro leaned back. He turned to the right, towards the door, where a canteen and a paper-wrapped sandwich sat beside the cot. 

“Nap after food.” Grabbing the canteen, he turned the cap off and took a big swig. He grabbed the food and unwrapped it, discovering a steak sandwich that looked so good it could only be Mozu’s. Shiro devoured it, chugging down most of the canteen as well. As all Mozu’s cooking was, the food was amazing. When he finished, he set both back down to the side, where they came from. 

Resting his head on the provided pillow, Shiro pulled the blanket up to his chest and settled in for a nap. Hopefully his friends would be okay. His family, too. Especially his dear ol’ dad. Ryoma did have a knack for getting into trouble. 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“Shiro! W-wake up!” A female voice came from the right of Shiro. A small pair of hands were on his chest, shaking him awake. It didn’t take much, he’d hand't slept much. Opening his eyes, he followed the source of the voice with his head and saw it belonged to a pink-haired young woman.

“Huh? Aunt Sakura?” Shiro didn’t need to study her face for long to tell that something was wrong. Her eyes were red and puffy. “What happened?”

“I-It’s Ryoma. H-he-“ Sakura burst into tears for what must have been the hundredth time that night. Morning? He wasn’t sure of the time. 

Shiro sat up and turned towards her. Placing his hands on her shoulders and looking her in the eye, Shiro braced as if he were about to take a punch to the stomach. 

“Aunt Sakura, is my dad dead?”

She held her sobbing long enough to choke out a “No.” Shiro’s shoulders relaxed and he dropped his hands. He sighed.

“What’s happened to him then? Where is he?” 

“W-we thought someone should come get you and bring you to him.” Dodging the question, Sakura reigned in her tears and stood up from where she was kneeling beside the cot. 

“Can you w-walk, Shiro?” 

“Depends. What time is it?” When did the battle end?” 

“The sun is just coming up. T-the fighting ended just over an hour ago.” 

“I’m good to go then.” Shiro used his arms to push himself up, slowly rising into a standing position. He stood about a foot and a half taller than Sakura, strange considering she was technically older than Shiro. But then again, she wasn’t. Thanks to the confusion of the deeprealms, many children were just as old, if not older than their parents and relatives. Times had been desperate during the war. 

Taking a few tentative steps, Shiro tested out his knees. They ached pretty bad, but it was still bearable. He made a mental note to keep off them as much as possible.

“Let’s get goin’.” Sakura nodded at him, then turned around and opened the door into the main throne room. She dashed out, Shiro close behind. 

The throne room was a lot more dreary than it usually was. It was filled to the brim with injured friends. Shiro spotted Siegbert sitting on the ground, leaning his back against the wall with his armor off and shirt torn apart. An endless amount of cuts were all over his torso. He must have run into someone good with knives or shuriken. Charlotte seemed to have taken quite a beating as well. Her left leg was in a splint, and her left arm in sling. Ignatius was passed out on the ground with a nasty gash on the side of his head. Reina had a deep cut across her forehead, one that was no doubt going to add a third scar to her already battle-worn visage. Keaton had an arrow embedded in his thigh. Many others had similar injuries. No one had gone unscathed and everyone had cuts and bruises everywhere. Even an hour after the fight had ended, everyone was in this bad a shape. Whoever their attackers were, Shiro thought, they were incredibly strong. 

Healers of all shapes and sizes were running around, trying to tend to everyone as fast as possible, while still doing the best they can. Troubadours and maids that served in the castle were everywhere, doing everything they could. Shiro spotted Dwyer phasing in out, carrying a staff in one hand and a tray of tea in the other. Azama’s head was completely bandaged, so much so you couldn’t see his goofy hair. Despite that, he was still running around with a sun festal. Mitama was doing the same, every once and a while letting off a wave from a great festal for those that hadn’t been healed yet. Forrest and Elise stood in the middle of the room, directing everything. They were handing out staves and rods, and whenever someone injured came near them, they stopped and tended to them. 

Despite how busy everything was, there was an odd silence that hung over the room. Usually, after big battles, moral was already on the rise while everyone was being treated. This time, it was like a sense of dread was behind everyones eyes. Something big had happened. Something Shiro had missed.

Sakura and Shiro had emerged in the far-left corner of the giant room. They walked upwards through the room, towards the large door in the left-hand wall. Both doors, the one on the left and the one on the right, led deeper into the castle, but the left door was a more direct route to the bedrooms. Shiro assumed that after whatever his dad caught up in happened, they took him back to his guest room. Whatever had happened to him, it must have been bad, as he usually would be kept with the other injured.

Shiro reached the twin doors, and gently pulled one open, so as to not disturb the nearby sleeping giant, Benny. He had his back against the wall, armor off, gauze over most of his torso and legs. Letting Sakura through, then slipping through himself, Shiro turned around and let the door close behind him. 

From then on they walked the halls in the silence, Sakura occasionally sniffling back tears. Shiro knew the way to his dads room; it was only a few doors down from his own. 

After a minute of walking, they came to Ryoma and Camilla’s shared guest room. Standing on either side, Shiro and Sakura stared at the door. 

“H-he’s still asleep right now. We don’t know when and i-i-if he’ll wake up, but right now he’s still alive.” Sakura put on a brave face and briefed Shiro. He took in her words and nodded.

“Well, I guess it’s now or never then,” Shiro said, while putting his hand on the door handle and twisting it. The door made a loud creaking noise as it tentatively swung open. 

On the other side was a guest bedroom nearly identical to the one Shiro had been staying in; large bed and bedside tables in the middle of the room, small table with cushy chairs to the back, a large oak dresser directly opposite the bed. The bed had silk sheets, the furniture decorated with gold paint. A luxurious room for a short stay. 

There was so much royal blood in this small room, Shiro was surprised it didn’t explode. In the corner to the left of the door, Xander sat on a stool. He was staring at the unconscious man in the bed, hand on his chin, lost in his thoughts. Corrin and Azura were standing on the far side of the bed. Hinoka sat sideways on the bed in between them. Takumi, Leo, Odin and Nyx were in the cushy chairs behind the three sisters. Takumi looked shell-shocked while the mages were whispering to each other intently. Saizo and Kagero stood in shadows, in the corner opposite Xander. Camilla was standing over Ryoma, tending to him with a cool cloth.

The man of the hour himself, Ryoma, lay asleep on the left side of the bed. Well, asleep was a generous term. Sleep is voluntary. Ryoma had a sense about him that said he had been knocked out cold. He was flat on his back, head propped up by multiple pillows. The sheet was pulled up to his hips. His shirt was off, skin red with heat. Camilla had a small pile of cold towels on a tray on the end of the bed. She kept dabbing all around Ryoma’s torso and face in an attempt to keep his temperature down. Every so often, she’d reach and grab a new one, the old one neatly folded back into place on the tray. 

All this Shiro took in after seeing that Ryoma was missing an arm. 

Where his sword arm should be was nothing. At his shoulder, gauze wrapped around and around, covering where his arm used to connect. Horrible burns that looked like lightning, or tree branches; they lined up and down the right side of his torso. Around them terrible bruises festered, discoloring Ryoma’s tan skin. 

His hair, too, had been damaged in whatever it was that caused his arm to come off. Normally a big brown tangled mess hanging behind him, the right side of it had been singed off. 

The second Shiro stepped into the room, Camilla turned around. Her face lit up when she saw him. She dropped the towel she was holding, rushed forward, and pulled her son into a hug. Sakura ran around from behind them to sit next to her brother Takumi. She began attempting to speak with him, to try and comfort him.

“Oh, my darling boy! Are you okay? You’re not hurt, are you?” Camilla’s silky voice broke the silence in the room. She put her hands on his cheeks, inspecting him for injuries in that way only mothers do. 

“Mom, I’m fine. Mitama patched me up. What’s happened to dad?”  
Camilla’s arms dropped to her side. “Come on, honey.” She grabbed her sons hand and led him to where she was a moment ago, at Ryoma’s side. Picking up the cloth she had dropped, she resumed. They stood there, side by side, while Camilla explained everything that had happened after Shiro retreated. Everything from Claudius, to his spell that froze the crowd and his speech, to Ryoma being trapped like a guinea pig, to his arm blowing off, and to Nyx breaking the barrier so they could bring him here. 

“Wow.” Shiro looked angry. “Who are these people to think that that evil king’s way of ruling was right? This Claudius guy can’t be possessed by Anankos, can he? We killed that damn dragon.”

“We did.” Corrin spoke up from the other side of the bed. “He’s dead, no doubt about it. Claudius is just genuinely insane. Or Anankos had possessed him as well, and driven him to insanity. He could’ve let loose his hold on him and had Claudius as a back-up plan. I don’t think he would do that though, Anankos was too confident that he would win.”

“Claudius has always been like this,” Xander said. Everyone’s eyes turned to him, except Takumi and the mages. “I’ve met him before, many times. My father said he was one of his greatest friends, and if for some reason I and all my siblings were to die, he would pass the throne to Claudius.” Xander stood up and walked to the end of the bed. 

“He is one of the cruelest men I’ve ever met. He rivals Iago, Hans, even Garon himself. Whenever he would come to the castle, he’d request at least one castle servant, always female, to come to his room. I never saw those girls again.” Xander crossed his arms. He looked like he had a bad taste in his mouth. 

“It makes sense that he would resist my kingship. He never liked me. I heard him talking with my father once about me. They didn’t know I was there, eavesdropping. He said that if I was his child, if I ever disobeyed him, he would kill me without hesitation. I ran from there as fast as I could, making sure I made as little noise as possible. I was terrified what they would do to me if they found me there.

“What I’m trying to say is… this isn’t new. Claudius is just this cruel.”

Camilla nodded in agreement. “I only briefly met him. According to Xander, he used to frequently visit the castle. After Elise was born, he stopped entirely. We’re not sure what it is that stopped him from coming. He still supported our father vehemently with troops and supplies, just not in person.” Shiro took in the new information, piece by piece. He came to the conclusion that it was not what he wanted to hear. 

“Backstory is great and all, but what I’d like to know is how we’re going to fight him,” Shiro said, looking between Xander and his mother. “We are going to fight him, aren’t we?”

“Of course we are.” Camilla put her hand on her sons shoulder. “No one can do this to my husband and get away with it. I’ll have his head.” 

“I agree,” Xander said, then looked towards Corrin. She nodded fervently, then said a simple “Same.”

“Ryoma is one of my closest friends. I’ve also never liked Claudius, and he seems to be the last thing standing between us and peace for Nohr. He attacked the king of Hoshido on Nohrian territory, in an obvious plea to try and create turmoil between our countries. He must have assumed that even though we are now allies, Nohr and Hoshido still have bad blood. He couldn’t be more wrong.

“Not only are we allies, the royal houses of Nohr and Hoshido have become good friends, and even intermarried. He did not know that going into this attack. I believe he does now, he said he had discovered new things about our forces. 

“He’ll be back in two months, he said. I propose instead that we go to him. This time we will have the element of surprise. I don’t know the exact locations of Rideus, but I know of the general location of the village. We send our best scouts, a small team of ninjas and adventurers. They chart the exact location and surrounding terrain, then come back and deliver the information to us. We use that to formulate a strategy. Everyone else stays here and trains while they are out. We can still get to the deeprealms, lets go back to our old fort. Time runs slower there; we’ll be able to train longer.” He stopped, waiting for others to comment on his plan. Shiro had seen this before. Xander was holding an impromptu war council. 

“We should keep this team of scouts to no more than four people, I think.” Azura piped up. While not that good on the battlefield herself, she always had been insightful in war meetings. “Any larger and we risk them getting caught, and most likely killed.”

“Yes, I was thinking somewhere around that size. Too large, and they will get captured. Too small, and they won’t be able to cover enough ground and get the information we need in time.” Xander responded.

“I think it’s pretty sound.” Corrin said. 

“I agree with Corrin.” Camilla said, grabbing a new rag from the now almost empty tray. While Xander was talking, she had been continuously tending to Ryoma. He looked better now, less flush. 

Everyone looked towards Hinoka. She had been quiet this whole conversation, staring at Ryoma with a blank face. Suddenly, that face contorted into anger. 

“Let’s do this.”

“I like the plan too.” A new voice joined the conversation from behind Azura. Leo had been listening in. Odin and Nyx were watching him. He stood up, and walked around the back side of his chair to stand behind his brother at the end of the bed. 

“We should ask all our ninjas and adventurers to see if anyone would like to volunteer before we order them too. This mission has a high risk factor, after all,” Leo added, crossing his arms.

“I will go.” Another new voice entered the conversation.. A moment later, Saizo stepped out from the shadows cast on the corner of the room. The group turned their heads to him.

“So will I.” Kagero said, emerging from the same shadows. 

“I am sure my brother will also volunteer,” Saizo said. “I cannot speak for my son, but I will inform him of the plan.”

Corrin nodded to the two ninjas.

“Thank you, Saizo, Kagero.”

“It’s our duty, milady. These people did something unforgivable to Lord Ryoma.” Kagero responded for both of them. 

“If you’ll excuse me, everyone, I must go inform my brother and son of this plan. I can also tell the army members to be in a certain area to receive instructions, if you wish me too” Saizo said. 

“They are already in the throne room, I’ll address them there. Thank you though, Saizo, you are excused.” Xander replied. Saizo bowed, then seemed to disappear into thin air, a habit of his. Kagero stepped forward.

“If none of you need me, then I will go offer my assistance to the healers in the throne room.” Nobody spoke up, so Kagero copied Saizo: she bowed and disappeared. 

“Now that this has all been set in motion, Nyx has a theory about what happened to Ryoma.” Leo gestured to the witch sitting on the couch to his right. Everyones eyes followed his hand to rest on Nyx as she turned around and stood up.

“Let’s hear it. I would like to have an idea of what happened to my brother,” Hinoka said, standing up from the bed. Nyx drew a drew a breath and opened her mouth. Just as she was about to start talking, someone else spoke.

“Yes, let’s. I’d like to know myself.” A weak, deep voice came from beside Camilla. Anxiously the group turned back around towards the bed. Ryoma had woken up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is what I based Ryoma's injuries off of: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/76/e1/56/76e1565ff546971f8ac9009d33a28d0c.jpg
> 
> They are called Lichtenberg scars, a form of Lichtenberg figures. Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichtenberg_figure


	4. The Complications of Magic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Ryoma has woken, Nyx explains what happened, and Camilla is caring.

“Sweetie! You’re awake! How do you feel?” Camilla asked her husband. She had been so worried about him. Losing anyone else would be better than losing her love. Reaching her arms around him, she pulled him into a hug, being careful not to touch any of the bruises or wounds on his body. 

“Brother!” Sakura jumped up from the chair she was in next to Takumi. Offering her hand to her dejected older brother, she led him to the bed. They took the last remaining spot beside Camilla. Odin and Nyx also vacated the chairs. Odin went to stand behind his Lord Leo, and Nyx behind Corrin and Hinoka. 

“Honestly? Like wyvern shit. What happened out there?” Ryoma replied weakly. Camilla pulled away, and resumed dabbing him with a cloth. 

“What’s the last thing you remember, brother?” Hinoka asked from the side of the bed.

“That man, Claudius; he hit me with a spell. All of you were frozen in place. I collapsed to the floor, and that’s it. Perhaps you could fill in the gaps?”

“We’d be happy too.” Corrin said. She went about telling him everything that had happened since he passed out. Nyx breaking the barrier, how his arm came off in something like an explosion, how Xander and Takumi carried him here, to his room. 

“Everyone else is getting healed up in the throne room. We took a big hit tonight,” Corrin finished her recount.

“Are we planning a counter-attack? If so, when?” Ryoma asked. ‘That’s my husband,’ Camilla thought. ‘Always thinking of the next battle.’

“I can answer that.” Xander spoke up. He filled him in on everything the group had discussed while Ryoma was asleep. 

“Once the ninjas get back, we will use the information they brought us to formulate strategy and alter our training methods. Then we’ll attack,” Xander finished speaking.

“Good. That will give me enough time to perfect my swordsmanship with my left arm.”

Camilla remembered the time all the royal children faced off with make-shift weapons for a ticket to a beach vacation. Ryoma had duel wielded daikons in that mock battle.

“Honey, you’ve trained with it already, haven’t you? You can duel wield swords with ease. I imagine it won’t be much of a challenge.” Camilla looked at Ryoma, her eyebrows down in confusion. 

“Yes, I have. But this is different. I always used to lead with my right arm when I duel wield. Now, I don’t have it,” Ryoma explained. Camilla nodded in understanding.

“You’re taking this surprisingly well, brother.” Corrin pointed out. 

“Well, when you’ve been in battle as long as I have without getting a major injury, you come to the conclusion that your luck will run out eventually. I’ve prepared for this, mentally.” Corrin nodded in understanding. 

“Ryoma, you might want to do something about your hair, as long as we’re talking about changes.” Azura said from out of nowhere. She sat on the bed next to Hinoka, on the opposite side of the bed from Camilla.

“What’s wrong with my hair?” Ryoma looked confused. He reached his arm back to feel what was wrong with it. ’Poor Ryoma.’ Camilla thought. ‘He’s always been protective of his hair.’ 

“Half of it got burned off in the explosion. It’s singed in half, right down the middle.” Azura said, bluntly. 

Ryoma’s eyes widened for a second, in an expression of disbelief. He seemed to go through all five stages of grief in about two seconds. 

He sighed. “Well, I should probably cut the rest of it off then, shouldn’t I? It’ll only get in the way.”

“We can worry more about your hair cut later.” Nyx cut in from behind Corrin. 

“Nyx is r-right. I’d like to know what happened to my brother out there.” Sakura said.

“Take it away then, Nyx.” Leo used stepped back, made eye contact with the witch, and stepped backwards while motioning to his spot. Nyx shuffled over and took it. 

“Okay. Keep in mind that this is all a hypothesis. It’s the best explanation I could come up with, but there is no research or proof behind it. 

“The spell that Claudius cast was something I’ve never seen before. It’s obvious that it was incredibly powerful, both from the scope of the spell and the lingering effect it had. In all my years, I’ve never seen anything quite so… impressive, frankly. How he managed to cast it, much less create it… he must be incredibly talented. It must have taken him a while to perfect as well. Something that looked that complicated, with all the runes and such, had to have been the result of a long while of experimenting and combining. 

“Anyways, I’m babbling. That lingering effect is what matters. Whatever it was, it was stronger than the normal damage over time type of effect that occurs with some other powerful spells. That’s what makes the whole thing so impressive. Like Odin explained, it looked like a dark cloud hanging over King Ryoma’s body, continuing to suck the life out of him. Normally poison effects would only last a minute or so, getting weaker by the moment. If you’re unlucky they last a minute, but usually less. And they usually don’t affect people too much, more like rubbing salt in a wound then creating a new wound. It hurts, but doesn’t make the overall damage worse. 

“This black cloud, however, was different. It got stronger the longer it affected the king, with no sign of stopping. Luckily, Raijinto was looking out for its master. 

“Us mages saw the magic move to Ryoma’s right arm, his sword arm. What other magic did he have with him? Only the divine weapon Raijinto, a sword infused with lightning. The sword recognized it’s master in danger, and tried to draw the magic to it so it could confine it and expel it later on. However, the two types didn’t mix at all. Light and dark magic tend not to. The sword backfired, an explosion being the result. Unluckily, King Ryoma’s arm got taken off in it. Remember the sound of the explosion, too? It wasn’t normal. It sounded sharper, like a lightning strike. Like I said, this is all just a theory, and a pretty outlandish one too. But it’s what I came up with, so I thought it was worth sharing.” Nyx relaxed her shoulders. No one, including Nyx herself, had even realized they were tight.

“I trust Nyx.” Leo said from behind her. “She’s the most experienced dark mage we have. And since neither I nor Odin have a better idea, I’m going to go with hers for now.”

Nyx stepped back to offer Leo his spot back. As they were shuffling, she looked at him. 

“Thank you for your confidence in me, Prince Leo.” He nodded to her, and accepted his spot back. 

“So within the magic in my sword trying to help, it accidentally blasted me with a lightning bolt?” Ryoma asked. 

“Pretty much.” Leo said bluntly. “But look on the bright side; it most likely would have been much worse if the black magic had hit you. You’re familiar with Raijinto’s magic; you would have had a harder resisting an unknown spell instead of magic you were familiar with.”

Ryoma nodded. “It makes sense to me. Now, I’d like to talk to my family alone. I’ll be up and on my feet soon, the aching is going down.” 

“Of course, brother.” Corrin said. She walked to the door and held it open, and began ushering everyone outside. By this point Kaze was waiting outside for Corrin, along with a few other retainers that could stand and weren’t healers. Setsuna was there, along with Laslow, Selena, Hinata, and Hana. Azura’s husband, Benny, had woken up and lugged himself there as well. 

Camilla watched Corrin stare and silently argue with Xander about who should exit the room first. That was something they always did; Xander would insist she leave first, as she was a lady, and he was chivalrous, but Corrin for some reason refused and wanted him to go first. Xander always won these little skirmishes. Admitting defeat after a few moments, Corrin dropped her hands from the door and dashed out. Xander slipped through the door as it was closing, and with a thud, Camilla was left alone with her husband and son. 

She pulled Ryoma into another hug. “You big lug. Don’t do that too me again. I thought you had died.”

Ryoma leaned forward and planted a kiss on the side of his loves face. “You know I wouldn’t do that to you without warning.”

“You’d better never do it to me, warning or no.” She pulled away. Tears ran down her face, all the anxiety she’d been feeling finally having a chance to escape. 

Shiro moved beside his mom, and broke the silence he had kept since his dad woke. “I… I’m glad you’re not dead, dad.”

Ryoma cracked a sideways grin. “I could say the same to you, son. You took a pretty bad beating there. It’s what you get for choosing to fight on the front lines. Like father, like son.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Shiro looked away and started to get up, thinking he had done his part as a son. Before he could, his mother put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. 

Camilla sniffled back a sob so she could talk. “Oh, Shiro, just hug your father already. Just because you’re both men does not mean you aren’t father and son.”

Shiro hesitated. He had never been one for sentimental moments before, considering how much his dad ignored him growing up. However, at this moment, he didn’t care. His father nearly died. That was going to affect him. 

Shiro wasted no time in doing as his mother suggested. He practically jumped, acting like a little child whose father hadn’t visited in a while. Ryoma smiled a soft smile while Shiro buried his head in his fathers good shoulder. A lot of unresolved tension between the two went out the window in that one moment, if only temporarily. 

’He never did get to spend much time with Ryoma as a boy.’ Camilla thought. 

After a few moments, Shiro pulled away and stood. His eyes were red, but he didn’t cry.

“Don’t you think you’d better get up now, old man? You’ve been laying down for a while.”

“Yes, son, I suppose I should. If you’re going, would you send Soleil? Laslow’s daughter? I’ve heard she dabbles in hairdressing. I’d like to make myself presentable.” 

“Sure.” Shiro exited, off to find the eccentric girl amidst the injured. But not before his mother jumped to hug him. Camilla was proud of him. He put aside years of stubbornness to care for and show love to his father. That was something she had been trying to get him to do for years. ‘But eventually they did it themselves.’

Ryoma removed the blanket from his legs and set it to the left. He swung his legs down to touch the floor and tentatively stood up, pushing off the bed with his arm. It didn’t hurt him to stand, so he walked across the room to the dresser. 

“Does your side hurt?” Camilla asked, following behind him.

“Not too much. Just a slight ache.” Camilla, however, had been around him enough to know he was lying. The tell was his eyes. The way he was turned around hiding his face from her right now meant he was trying to conceal his lie. It must have hurt like hell.

“Right. Still, honey, please try and take it at least a little easy? I know you, I know that you will overexert yourself.” Even though she knew he was lying, Camilla decided not to bring it up. She also knew that he could be incredibly stubborn, and just pointing out that he was lying wouldn’t change anything. 

“I’ll try.” Ryoma opened the dresser and pulled out a provided simple white shirt, in a Nohrian cut. He grabbed one side to open the bottom, and threw it over his head. 

Trying to pull it down with one arm wasn’t working so well. His head got tangled in the cloth in moments. Camilla giggled at her husband, the High King of Hoshido, struggling with and stuck under a piece of fabric.

“Would you like some help with that?” Camilla asked, more of a statement than an actual question, as she didn’t wait for his response. Walking around to his front, she pulled the shirt down to his waist. Ryoma popped his head through the top.

“Thank you.” Reaching behind him, Ryoma pulled his long mess of hair out of his shirt. Camilla stood on her toes, placed her hands on his shoulders, and kissed her husband properly, on the lips. Pulling her close, Ryoma held her to him for what felt like hours. Camilla melted into her husbands arms, eventually pulling away to bury her head in his right shoulder. Feeling tears coming, she snaked her arms around his waist. As she began to cry again, Ryoma could feel her tears drenching his shirt.

“Y-you were just lying there.” Camilla started with a sniff. “Not moving. Barely breathing. You looked like-” She choked on a sob before she could continue. Ryoma comforted her by moving his hand up to pet her head. 

“I plan to keep breathing for a while, Camilla. I love you too much too stop.” Ryoma leaned down to speak in her ear. “Don’t you leave me either. Then I wouldn’t have much reason to keep breathing.” 

Camilla lifted her head and looked at him. “What about our son? And Corrin? Xander and Kaze, your closest friends? Your country?

“Well, they’re reasons too. But you’re my main inspiration.”

Camilla smiled. Finally able to compose herself, she gently pushed away from her husband. 

“I don’t care what happens to me, don’t leave our son without a parent. I don’t want him going through what I did. ”

“He won’t. We’ll make sure of that. Now, enough talk of the depressing. Shall we-“

Ryoma was interrupted by a knock on the door. 

“Come in, it’s unlocked.” Ryoma said to whoever was standing there.

The door opened, and a young girl with unkempt honey-colored hair stuck her head through the door. She held up a pair of scissors and a hairbrush.

“You called for my skills, King Ryoma?”

“Yes, Soleil, come in.” The young girl pushed the door all the way open and waltzed in. Walking around to Ryoma’s back, she examined his singed mane. 

“Ooo. That is a disaster. We’ll have to take the rest of it off. Maybe style it into something like your sons hair?” The bubbly girl’s words constantly changed pitch and speed, making it somewhat difficult to follow her.

Ryoma sighed. “Well, if there isn’t anything we can do to save it, yes, something like Shiro’s hair be would fine.”

“Perfect! Then take a seat. Lady Camilla, would you help me with this? I think this job will require more than one pair of hands.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OHMIGOSH IM SO SORRY THIS IS SO LATE AAAAHHHHHH IM A HORRIBLE PERSON.   
> School has started and has begun to suck my life.  
> However, my promise to you all is that I will finish this series, come hell or highwater. It might take some time, and uploads will most likely be infrequent (I will try to upload more!), but It WILL be finished.
> 
> Anyways, thank you all for reading! Sorry again!


	5. Reconnaissance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The recon team sets out, and everyone is anxiously waiting their safe return with news of how to attack Rideus.

And so the preparations to attack Rideus began. Life was essentially put on hold until the matter could be resolved. First, everyone moved back into the old Deeprealm fort Corrin had so lovingly built up during the war. Of course, Xander, Ryoma, Corrin, and all the other siblings popped in and out, having to balance training and their royal duties. 

It ended up being the four ninjas, Saizo, Kaze, Kagero, and Asugi, on the reconnaissance team. They only trained for a few days before heading out. The estimated time of the trip was a month, so it was a big deal when they left. This mission had a very high risk factor, after all. The chances of them coming back unscathed after that much time were abysmally low. 

Mozu and Midori were there. They had prepared the team several days special provisions, along with their normal rations, to “start off the trip right with some good o’ home cooking.” Mozu kissed her husband, telling him to stay safe. Midori gave her father a good luck charm she had obtained from her good friend Ignatius. She told him that “It always kept her safe, so you should have it. Then you’ll come back to us safe and sound.”

Xander and Ryoma also sent off Kaze with a set of brand new barb shuriken and a silver sword. Brotherly hugs ensued as they wished him well. 

Arthur, Percy, and Beruka where there to see off their spouses as well. (Though Arthur was a little late. He had run under a ladder when a paint bucket fell from it, causing him to have to change.) Beruka wasn’t the best at heartfelt anything, but she did send her husband and son off with a hug and a well wish. Arthur had bought Kagero a new scarf for the occasion and presented it to her. Kagero put it on, then was immediately glomped by an energetic Percy. Asugi’s girlfriend Nina also sent him off with a gift. A large bag of caramels, just small enough to hide in his scarf for emergency snacking. 

All in all, it was a bitter sweet goodbye for everyone. Those closest to the four put on brave faces for everyones sake, not wanting them to see how worried they were. After the ninjas left, spirits in the camp were down for a short time. Not for long, however, as Corrin (with Hana and Effie’s help) took it upon herself to schedule a training regimen specific to every member of the army. Everyone was elated to have something to do other than wallow in their fears, and set about training immediately. 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~ 

“Ah, Corrin, the Crux of Fate! It is I, Odin Dark! I have come to you today to request a favor.” Corrin jumped at the sudden intrusion, then turned towards the voice that caused it. She was sat on a crate, and had been turned towards the corner of the supply room, checking their stock of Heart Seals.

“Gods, Odin you scared me. Knock on the door or something for goodness sake. Anyways, what can I do for you?” She replied, turning around and standing. 

“I was curious if you had any specialty classes I could try out. Many times I find myself wishing I could master even more skills. And, if I was allowed a new weapon class, just think of all the possibilities of naming said weapons!” Odin, always one for the theatrics, used his hands to illustrate using several different types of weapons, including a bow and a sword. 

Corrin sighed. “Well, I have a thing called a Fell Brand I got from Anna at the Dragons Gate. She said it reclasses you into something called a Grandmaster?”

Odin went pale at the word, but quickly recovered.

“She said they use magic and swords. Sounds right up your ally.” Corrin reached into a nearby crate to fetch the odd contraption and held it towards the mage.

“That… sounds… PERFECT! I’ll take it.” Odin snatched the golden… thing out of her hands. “My blood aches at the possibilities of this new class! Thank you Corrin, friend of chosen hero Odin Dark!” The blond turned around and skipped out, eager to try out his new class (and show Laslow and Selena, who would no doubt be surprised.)

Corrin went back to taking stock, having held her count on heart seals all through the conversation. She didn’t get much further though, as her husband strolled through the door. Xander carried a bowl of beef stew and a canteen with him. 

“Hello, Corrin. How has your day been? I finished up with mess hall duties. I thought I’d bring you dinner while it’s warm.” Taking inventory was infamous for being an incredibly slow and tedious chore, especially so for those that don’t normally do it. Usually, it would be several hours after dinner had finished before whomever was taking inventory was done. Corrin had pulled the short end of the straw today. 

“A warm meal and a visit from you, that’s just what I needed,” Corrin stood, turned, and walked to Xander. With a small smile and a quick peck on the lips, he handed over the meal. Corrin took the food and returned to her seat to work while she ate. Xander followed her, pulled up a crate behind her, and started to massage her shoulders while she worked. 

Corrin noticed his kind actions, and though she was appreciative, she was also confused.

“I thought you had training now? Why the sudden pampering?” 

“Does a man need a reason to pamper his wife?”

“… I guess not. Just don’t entirely skip your training to do so.”

Xander stood and pulled his seat to the right of his wife. “I wasn’t planning on it. I only wanted to help you finish your chores, so that we might train together.”

Corrin smiled. “Well then, get to work and count our Elixirs.” 

“Yes, little princess.” 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“Huhh… huhh… *gasp*” Xander pulled back to catch his breath after a relentless attack from Corrin. As soon as they finished up in the store room, they went outside to spar in the field next to their shared treehouse. It had been several hours since they started, and it was dark out, but luckily the full moon provided plenty of light. Currently, Corrin was winning, but she thought it had been easy for her to pull ahead. Sure, she had beaten Xander in a one-on-one spar before, but not since the war had ended. And even then, that was only once. 

Corrin saw an opening on his left hip, and readied a strike. Swinging underhand with her wooden training sword, she held back on her swing to merely tap him. Just to show that she had won, not to hurt him. 

Corrin dropped to her knees. She was also exhausted from the hours of training. Their bouts together were always the most strenuous and the most rewarding sessions.

“Xander, I think… we should retire… for the night,” she said between wheezes. 

“Yes, I… agree,” he said, his own gasp interrupting his speech as well. Slowly, both stood and walked side by side back to their treehouse. Entering the room, they stripped their armor and tossed it and their swords in the corner. Both practically fell into bed, Corrin on the right and Xander on the left. 

Before Corrin could go to sleep however, she needed to resolve something that had been bugging her. 

“Xander?” 

“Hmm?” He had been on his left side, and turned back right. 

“What is it you want?”

“What do you mean, little princess?” Xander was horrible at lying to Corrin. She could see it in his eyes. 

“You were pampering me more than usual today. And you let me win during practice. What do you want?”

Xander relaxed onto his back. “Well… I had an idea.”

Corrin moved to lay her head on his chest. “Oh? And what would that be?”

“I thought about how much fun I had with you and Elise when were little. How we used to all play games together, as a family, no war. And I know that I was sort of a father figure to Elise for a while. I just thought… it would be nice to have that again. Or, at least as close as we can get to it.”

“What do you mean?” Corrin gazed up at his face. He looked into her eyes and started to stroke her hair. 

“Well… what would you think about having another child?”

Corrin lifted her head off his chest and stared at him. “Now?! While Nohr is being threatened?” 

“No, no, I mean after we’ve resolved everything. We never did get to spend much time with Siegbert or Kana as children. We could try for a daughter. I’d love to have our own little princess running around.”

Corrin settled back onto his chest, using it as a pillow. “Well… I guess it would be nice… there’d be a hell of an age gap between her and our sons… And we can’t call her little princess, that would be weird.”

“I agree. We could have her spend some time training in one of the deep realms when she is old enough to fight. And maybe… small princess?” Xander said. 

“I’d rather not put any more children through that, unless it’s absolutely necessary. And that’s still a weird nickname. Well, we have time to think over it.”

“Does that mean you’re on board?”

“…Yes. I’d still like to sleep on it, but right now, I like the idea.”

“I’m glad you do.” Xander leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Let’s talk more in the morning; we’re both tired.” 

“Amen to that.” Corrin said, eliciting a slight chuckle from her husband. Corrin adjusted her positioning on his chest. “I love you.”

“Not as much as I do.”

~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“Lady Corrin! Lord Xander! Wake up, it’s urgent!” Jakob ran up the ladder and into the treehouse where Xander and Corrin were fast asleep. Panting, he burst open the door and raised his voice once more.

“Please, Sires! It’s the ninjas, they’ve sent a message!” He gasped. “They’ll be here in minutes!” Xander had woken from slumber the moment he heard someone yelling. He was a light sleeper. Corrin, on the other hand, was not. Sitting up, Xander gently pushed Corrin aside from where she was, still resting on his chest. She grumbled and rolled over.

“Jakob, it’s you.” Seeing the dire look on the butlers face, Xander inquired. “What happened? What’s wrong?” 

“I’m not sure. Only that it is something bad.” Jakob presented Xander a crumpled piece of parchment. “A small pigeon came straight to my door with this.” 

Xander examined the hasty writing on the scrap. It was nearly illegible, but he could make out the Hoshidan symbols for “injured” and “help”, as well a several numbers, likely referring to how close the party was to home. 

“I don’t know what’s happened, but it can’t be good. They’re back a week earlier than expected. Lord Xander, I have a very bad feeling about this.”

“As do I. Thank you, Jakob, you are dismissed. Please inform those closest to the party members first, then everyone else. I’ll rouse my wife and we’ll be down as soon as possible.” Jakob made a short bow and rushed out to follow Xander’s orders.

Xander turned to his right and nudged Corrin. “Corrin, it’s urgent. Something has happened to the ninjas.” 

“Hnng-! What? What’s happening?” Corrin shot up at the word “ninjas”. “Are we being attacked again?”

“No, but the scouting team is almost back, and it sounds like they are bringing bad news with them.” Xander swung his legs off the bed and stood up. He walked over to a table and lit a candle, then to the dresser and began to dress himself, pulling out clothes for Corrin as well. 

“What? What happened? Did they get caught?” Corrin stood and walked, like a zombie, to were Xander was. She grabbed the shirt and pants he set out for her and pulled them on over her underclothes. 

“I don’t know. I hope nothing too terrible, but I have a bad feeling it’s something big.” Xander turned around with a another lit candle and handed it to Corrin.

Corrin took the candle and said, “How about we go find out.”

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“They would have come in through one of the side entrances,” Corrin said. Xander and her were now on the ground, looking for where the ninjas were. It was a moonless night outside, and nearing pitch black. The only light they had was their measly candles, barely illuminating the path.

“There,” Xander said. Near the right side of the fort, a small group of flickering candlelights could be seen, with more trickling in every few moments. 

Approaching the group, Xander and Corrin looked around. The crowd was perpetually growing, with about half of the army there by now. 

In the front were the relatives of the party. Beruka and Nina stood to the front left, quietly discussing under their breaths. Ever since Asugi and Nina started to date, Beruka had been surprisingly fond of the girl. Nina looked up to her as well. 

Mozu and Midori stood in the front-center. Midori held a glass jar of… something in her hands. Probably some sort of medicine she intended to present to her father when he came back. She must have been working to perfect it for his return. Mozu had her arms on her daughters shoulders, a look of worry evident on her face. 

Arthur and Percy were on the front-right. Percy had opted to sit on Arthur’s shoulders, something he used to do quite often, but less so now that he was older. Corrin assumed he was doing it for old times sake. And to be the first to see the ninjas as they arrive. 

Xander and Corrin came up behind the crowd, and opted to occupy the space between Nina and Mozu. Ryoma, Camilla, and Shiro came up on the right and stood to Arthur’s side. 

You could sense how anxious the crowd was. They had all heard Jakob’s speculation of something having gone wrong. What was about to happen? Would they have the information we need? Are they okay? Would everyone be coming back? As they pondered these questions, the atmosphere shifted.

It began to rain. 

A ringing silence spread over the assembled soldiers as the first drops pelted the ground. Percy, high up on his dad’s shoulders, was the first to spot the team appear as if from nowhere. They teleported into the deeprealm, only a few dozen feet outside the forts’ walls. He started to yell of their return, thinking everything was all right. But as the others saw the group themselves, Percy seemed to make no sound to them. The boy’s face quickly went slack and his cries silent after getting a better look at the group.

The team crossed the threshold. Asugi was scratched up, sporting a large bandage over his left eye, covering a majority of his face. He was lending his shoulder to Kagero, who had her right foot completely missing from the ankle down, the stump hastily wrapped in blood-soaked gauze. They hobbled in first. 

Following a few feet behind was Saizo. He had a slight limp in his right leg. For the first time anyone could recall, his expressions were obviously painted on his face. 

He read of grief and pain and regret and every horrible emotion you could have, considering what had happened. 

In his arms was the limp body of Kaze, wrapped in a blanket. He had so many wounds, had been so thoroughly beaten, the only way he was recognizable was his token green hair. 

Saizo stopped. Everyone looked at him. He spoke four words.

“My brother is dead.”

The silence was only permeated by the shattering of the jar Midori dropped to the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man do I love writing angst. It's so much fun. I have no idea why. And yes, this chapter is late, I'm sorry. School, and recently FFXV happened. At least I have some ideas from FFXV to work on. Thanks much for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Any and all feedback (critique, comments, bookmarks, kudos) is EXTREMELY appreciated and you will get virtual hugs from me. 
> 
> ~Artemis


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